Air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to an air conditioner. The air conditioner includes: a main body  10  having an intake hole  11  and a discharge hole  12;  a heat exchanger  20  disposed within the main body  10  and installed downstream from the intake hole  11;  a cooling coil  30  disposed within the main body  10  and installed downstream from the heat exchanger  20;  a fan  40  disposed within the main body  10  and installed downstream from the cooling coil  30  to exhaust air within the main body  10  to an indoor space; and air passages  13   a,    13   b,    13   c  and  13   d  for introducing air passing through the cooling coil  30  again into the heat exchanger  20.  Thus, according to the present invention, cooling/dehumidifying energy may be recovered from cooled air to prevent a cold draft from occurring and improve energy usage efficiency.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology, and particularly, to an air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology, in which a heat exchanger is provided in order to recover the cooling/dehumidifying energy.

BACKGROUND ART

In general, an air conditioner for air-conditioning an indoor space in the summer includes an indoor unit and an outdoor unit. As shown in FIG. 1, an intake hole 101, a cooling coil 110, a fan 120 and a discharge hole 102 are provided in the indoor unit. Herein, indoor air is sucked through the intake hole 101 formed at the lower portion of the indoor unit 100, passed through the cooling coil 110 so as to be cooled and then supplied to an indoor space through the discharge hole 102 formed at the upper portion of the indoor unit 100 by using a blower or the fan 120.

Herein, the air introduced into the indoor unit through the intake hole 101 is cooled/dehumidified to a saturation temperature while being passed through the cooling coil 110, and then discharged to the indoor space. If the cooled air is directly discharged to the body of a user, the user may feel displeasure, i.e., cold draft. In case of a rainy day in which the humidity in the air is high, it is impossible to sufficiently perform dehumidifying, and also it is difficult to control the temperature and humidity at the same time.

In addition, condensate generated while indoor air is cooled is formed on the surface of the cooling coil installed in the indoor unit. In a conventional air conditioner, since the cooled air discharged from the cooling coil forms an ascending air current, the condensate formed on the surface of the cooling coil cannot be naturally fallen down by gravity but stays thereon due to drawing force of the fan, and thus the surface of the cooling coil is wet and cooling efficiency of the cooling coil is deteriorated.

DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

An object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology, which can prevent the cold draft, can enhance the cooling efficiency and also can save energy.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology, which can finely and precisely control the temperature and humidity of the air discharged to an indoor space.

Technical Solution

To achieve the object of the present invention, the present invention provides an air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology, including a main body having an intake hole and a discharge hole; a heat exchanger which is disposed in the main body and installed downstream from the intake hole; a cooling coil which is disposed in the main body and installed downstream from the heat exchanger; a fan which is disposed in the main body and installed downstream from the cooling coil to exhaust air in the main body to an indoor space; and air passages for introducing air passing through the cooling coil again into the heat exchanger. Preferably, the air passages further comprise a damper which is opened and closed in order to introduce a part of air passing through the cooling coil directly to the fan.

Advantageous Effects

According to the present invention, since the heat exchanger is provided at the front end of the cooling coil of the air conditioner in order to heat again the air cooled/dehumidified by the cooling coil using the air introduced from the indoor space, it is possible to prevent the cold draft, and also since the air introduced from the indoor space is cooled by the air cooled/dehumidified by the cooling coil, it is possible to save energy necessary for the cooling/dehumidifying and reheating.

Further, according to the present invention, since the damper which can bypass the air is further provided in the air conditioner so that, if necessary, the overcooled air can be bypassed through the damper and then properly mixed with the cooled/dehumidified and reheated air, it is possible to finely and precisely control the temperature and humidity of the air discharged to the indoor space.

In addition, since the air passed through the cooling coil forms a descending air current through the air passage vertically formed, it is possible to efficiently remove the condensate formed on the surface of the cooling coil by further help of gravity, and thus it is also possible to prevent deterioration of the cooling efficiency due to wetting of the surface of the cooling coil.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of preferred embodiments given in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional air conditioner.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of an air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a view showing the configuration of a heat exchanger of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a view showing the configuration of a heat exchanger of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of an air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of an air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is view showing the configuration of a heat exchanger of FIG. 7.

[Detailed Description of Main Elements] 10: main body 11: intake hole 12: discharge hole 13a, 13b, 13c, 13d: air passage 14: partition plate 20: heat exchanger 20A, 20A′: first heat exchanging 20B, 20B′: second heat exchanging plate plate 21A, 21B: heat exchanger intake hole 22A, 22B: heat exchanger discharge hole 30: cooling coil 31: damper 40: fan

BEST MODE

Hereinafter, the embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to accompanying drawings.

The present invention relates to an air conditioner in which heat exchange is performed between air introduced into the air conditioner through an intake hole and air cooled/dehumidified by a cooling coil in order to save energy. To this end, in an air conditioner main body 10 of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 2, a heat exchanger 20, a cooling coil 30 and a fan 40 are installed, in turn, in an air flowing direction. An indoor air intake hole 11 is formed upstream from the heat exchanger 20 so that indoor air can be introduced through the intake hole 11, and an indoor air discharge hole 12 is formed at the side of a discharge part of the fan 40 so that the air introduced through the discharge hole 12 from the intake hole 11 is cooled/dehumidified and then discharged into an indoor space.

The main body 10 is to install the heat exchanger 20, cooling coil 30 and fan 40 therein. Therefore, a hollow portion is formed in the main body 10, and also the main body 10 is formed with the intake hole 11 for sucking external air and the discharge hole 12 for discharging the cooled air into an indoor space.

In the present invention, the intake hole 11 and discharge hole 12 formed at the main body 10 may be formed at one of front, rear and side surfaces of the main body 10. According to this difference, the heat exchanger 20 and cooling coil 30 located in the main body 10 are also arranged differently. Hereinafter, these differences will be described in each embodiment.

First Embodiment

In a first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, all of the intake hole 11 and discharge hole 12 are formed in the front surface of the main body 10, and the heat exchanger 20 and cooling coil 30 are disposed, in turn, downstream from the intake hole 11, and a separate air passage 13 a is provided downstream of the cooling coil 30.

The heat exchanger 20 disposed downstream from the intake hole 11 performs heat exchange between air introduced into the main body 10 and cooled air, such that the introduced air is previously cooled, thereby ultimately enhancing cooling efficiency. As shown in FIG. 3, the heat exchanger 20 is a stacked plate type heat exchanger in which plate type first and second heat exchanging plates 20A and 20B are alternately stacked. Heat exchanger intake and discharge holes 21A, 21B, 22A, 22B are formed in each of the first and second heat exchangers 20A, 20B so that air passing through the heat exchanger 20 is cross-flowed.

In other words, as shown in FIG. 3, the heat exchanger intake hole 21A and heat exchanger discharge hole 22A are respectively formed at left and right sides of the first heat exchanger 20A, and the heat exchanger intake hole 21B and heat exchanger discharge hole 22B are respectively formed at left and right sides of the second heat exchanger 20B so as to cross the heat exchanger intake and discharge holes 21A, 22A of the first heat exchanger 20A. Therefore, air introduced through the intake hole 11 is flowed to the cooling coil 30 through the first heat exchanger 20A, and the air passing through the cooling coil 30 is flowed to the discharge hole 12 through the second heat exchanger 20B, such that the air in the heat exchanger is cross-flowed.

Herein, in case that the first and second heat exchanging plates 20A, 20B are formed of a plastic material, it is relatively easier to form the heat exchanger intake and discharge holes 21A, 21B, 22A, 22B or change their positions, compared with that they are formed of a metallic material. Therefore, the heat exchanger used in the present invention is preferably a plastic heat exchanger.

The cooling coil 30 is disposed downstream from the heat exchanger 20, and a circulating coolant is flowed in the cooling coil 30.

And an air passage is formed between a rear surface of the main body 10 and the cooling coil 30 and at the lower portion of the heat exchanger 20 so as to form the “L”-shaped air passage 13 a, and thus the air passing through the cooling coil 30 is introduced again to the heat exchanger 20.

The fan 40 is disposed at the upper side of the heat exchanger 20 and cooling coil 30, and the air passing through the heat exchanger 20, cooling coil 30 and the air passage 13 a is sucked and then discharged to the indoor space through the discharge hole 12.

In the air conditioner of the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, the indoor air introduced into the main body through the intake hole is introduced into the main body 10 through the opened side surface of the heat exchanger 20, and primarily cooled by the cooled/dehumidified air flowed along an adjacent layer in the heat exchanger 20, and then secondarily cooled while passing through the cooling coil 30. And the secondarily cooled air is guided to the side of the heat exchanger 20 through the air passage 13 a, introduced into the lower portion of the exchanger 20 and heated by indoor air while being flowed in the heat exchanger 20. The heated air is discharged through an upper portion of the heat exchanger 20 and then flowed to the indoor space through the discharge hole 12 by the fan 40.

Therefore, since the heat exchanger is disposed at the front end of the cooling coil so that the air cooled/dehumidified by the cooling coil is reheated again by the air introduced from the indoor space and then supplied, it is possible to prevent cold draft, and as the same time, since the air introduced from the indoor space is cooled by the air cooled/dehumidified by the cooling coil, it is possible to save energy necessary for the cooling/dehumidifying and reheating.

In addition, in a conventional air conditioner, the indoor air is cooled, condensed and then attached on the surface of the cooling coil 30. Herein, since an ascending air current is generated by the fan 40, the condensate formed on the surface of the cooling coil 30 cannot be naturally fallen down by gravity but stays thereon due to drawing force of the fan 40, and thus the surface of the cooling coil 30 is wet and the cooling efficiency is sharply deteriorated. However, according to the present invention, since a descending air current is formed at the side of a discharge part of the cooling coil 30, the condensate formed on the surface of the cooling coil 30 can be efficiently removed by additional help of gravity. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the deterioration of the cooling efficiency due to wetting of the surface of the cooling coil.

Meanwhile, the air passage 13 a may further include a damper 31 by which a part of air passing through the cooling coil 30 is not reheated by heat exchange with the indoor air introduced from the intake hole 11 and is directly supplied to the fan 40.

That is, in case that the air passage is configured so that the air cooled by the cooling coil 30 has to be passed again through the heat exchanger 20, it is difficult to properly control temperature and humidity of the air discharged to the indoor space. Therefore, according to the present invention, since a part of the air passing through the cooling coil 30 is directly introduced into the fan 40 through the damper 31 and then mixed with air passed again through the heat exchanger 20, it is possible to properly control the temperature and humidity of the air.

Herein, it is preferable to control an opening level of the damper 31 or whether to open or close the damper 31 according to a value detected by a temperature/humidity sensor which is installed in the main body 10.

To this end, a controller of the damper 31 is connected with the temperature/humidity sensor (not shown), and the opening level of the damper 31 is automatically controlled by the controller according to the temperature/humidity value detected by the temperature/humidity sensor. Thus, it is possible to finely and precisely control the supply of cooled air according to a temperature/humidity value set by a user.

Second Embodiment

As shown in FIG. 4, a second embodiment relates to an air conditioner in which the intake hole 11 for sucking the indoor air is formed in the rear surface of the main body 10, and the discharge hole 12 for discharging the cooled air to the indoor space is formed in the front surface of the main body 10. Therefore, the second embodiment is the same as the first embodiment except that installation positions of the heat exchanger 20, cooling coil 30 and air passage 13 b are opposed to those in the first embodiment. That is, in the second embodiment, the intake hole 11 is formed in the rear surface of the main body 10, and the heat exchanger 20 and cooling coil 30 are disposed, in turn, downstream from the intake hole 11, and the air passage is formed between the front surface of the main body 10 and the cooling coil 30 and also at the lower side of the heat exchanger 20, and thus a reversed “L”-shaped air passage 13 b is formed. Further, a damper 31 may be further provided at an upper side of the air passage 13 b.

Therefore, a direction that air is introduced into the main body 10 and then discharged is opposed to that in the first embodiment. Thus, as shown in FIG. 5, positions of the heat exchanger intake hole 21A and heat exchanger discharge hole 22A formed in the first heat exchanging plate 20A used in the heat exchanger 20 are also opposed to those in first embodiment.

As described above, since the intake hole 11 and discharge hole 12 are respectively formed in the rear and front surfaces of the main body 10, it is prevented that the cooled air is introduced again into the main body 10 through the intake hole 11 due to the drawing force of the fan while the cooled air is discharged through the discharge hole 12.

Third Embodiment

As shown in FIG. 6, a third embodiment relates to an air conditioner in which the intake hole 11 is formed in both side surfaces of the main body 10. Except that, unlike the first embodiment, the intake hole 11 is formed in the side surfaces of the main body 10, the rest configuration, i.e., the heat exchanger 20, cooling coil 30 and air passage 13 c of the third embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment. As described above, if the intake hole 11 is formed in the side surfaces of the main body 10, it is prevented that the cooled air is introduced again into the main body 10 through the intake hole 11 due to the drawing force of the fan while the cooled air is discharged through the discharge hole 12.

Fourth Embodiment

As shown in FIG. 7, a fourth embodiment relates to an air conditioner in which the intake hole 11 is formed in a lower portion of the front surface or both side surfaces of the main body 10.

As shown in FIG. 7, the heat exchanger 20 is disposed inside the rear surface of the main body 10, and the cooling coil 30 is disposed (downstream) at a front surface of the heat exchanger 20 so that air passing through the heat exchanger 20 is flowed to the cooling coil 30.

Further, the air passage 13 d is formed between the cooling coil 30 and the main body 10. Herein, a lower side of the air passage 13 d is separated by a partition plate 14 provided at the lower end of the cooling coil 30 so that air passing through the air passage 13 d is not introduced into the intake hole 11.

And like in other embodiments, the damper 31 may be further provided at the upper side of the air passage 13 d so that a part of the air passing through the cooling coil 30 is not passed through the heat exchanger but is directly supplied to the fan 40. And the opening level of the damper 31 is also controlled in the same manner as the first embodiment.

In the fourth embodiment having the above-mentioned structure and arrangement, the indoor air introduced in the main body 10 through the intake hole 11 is introduced into the heat exchanger 20 through the lower end thereof, passed through the cooling coil 30 via the internal portion of the heat exchanger 20, passed again through the cooling coil 30 along the vertical air passage 13 d, introduced again into the heat exchanger 20, sucked by the fan 40 installed downstream from the heat exchanger 20 and then discharged to the discharge hole 12.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned air current, as shown in FIG. 8, the heat exchanger intake hole 21A and exchanger discharge hole 22A are respectively formed in the lower and upper surfaces of the first heat exchanging plate 20A′ forming the heat exchanger 20, and the heat exchanger intake hole 21B and exchanger discharge hole 22B are respectively formed in the side and upper surfaces of the second heat exchanging plate 20B′.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

According to the present invention as described above, since the heat exchanger 20 is disposed in the air conditioner, the cooled air is reheated by this structure and thus it is possible to prevent the cold draft, and as the same time, since the cooling/dehumidifying heat can be recovered, it is possible to increase the energy efficiency. Further, since the damper 31 is further provided, it is possible to precisely control the temperature and humidity of the air supplied to the indoor space.

While the present invention has been described with respect to the specific embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims. 

1. An air conditioner using cooling/dehumidifying energy recovery technology, comprising: a main body having an intake hole and a discharge hole; a heat exchanger which is disposed in the main body and installed downstream from the intake hole; a cooling coil which is disposed in the main body and installed downstream from the heat exchanger; a fan which is disposed in the main body and installed downstream from the cooling coil to exhaust air in the main body to an indoor space; and air passages for introducing air passing through the cooling coil again into the heat exchanger.
 2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the intake hole and discharge hole are respectively formed in a front surface of the main body, and the air passage is formed between a rear surface of the main body and the cooling coil and also at the lower sides of the cooling coil and heat exchanger so as to be in the form of a reversed “L” shape.
 3. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the intake hole is formed in a rear surface of the main body, and the discharge hole is formed in a front surface of the main body, and the air passage is formed between the front surface of the main body and the cooling coil and also at the lower sides of the cooling coil and heat exchanger so as to be in the form of a reversed “L” shape.
 4. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the intake hole is formed in a side surface of the main body, and the discharge hole is formed in a front surface of the main body, and the air passage is formed between a rear surface of the main body and the cooling coil and also at the lower sides of the cooling coil and heat exchanger so as to be in the form of an “L” shape.
 5. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the intake hole is formed at a lower side of a front or side surface of the main body, and the discharge hole is formed in a front surface of the main body, and the air passage is formed between the front surface of the main body and the cooling coil, and a lower portion of the air passage is separated from the intake hole by a partition plate installed at a lower end of the cooling coil.
 6. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the heat exchanger comprises a first heat exchanging plate and a second heat exchanging plate which are alternately stacked on each other and in which heat exchanger intake/discharge holes and are formed respectively.
 7. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the air passages further comprise a damper which is opened and closed in order to introduce a part of air passing through the cooling coil directly to the fan.
 8. The air conditioner according to claim 7, wherein the damper is controlled by a temperature/humidity sensor.
 9. The air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the heat exchanger comprises a first heat exchanging plate and a second heat exchanging plate which are alternately stacked on each other and in which heat exchanger intake/discharge holes and are formed respectively.
 10. The air conditioner according to claim 3, wherein the heat exchanger comprises a first heat exchanging plate and a second heat exchanging plate which are alternately stacked on each other and in which heat exchanger intake/discharge holes and are formed respectively.
 11. The air conditioner according to claim 4, wherein the heat exchanger comprises a first heat exchanging plate and a second heat exchanging plate which are alternately stacked on each other and in which heat exchanger intake/discharge holes and are formed respectively.
 12. The air conditioner according to claim 5, wherein the heat exchanger comprises a first heat exchanging plate and a second heat exchanging plate which are alternately stacked on each other and in which heat exchanger intake/discharge holes and are formed respectively.
 13. The air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the air passages further comprise a damper which is opened and closed in order to introduce a part of air passing through the cooling coil directly to the fan.
 14. The air conditioner according to claim 3, wherein the air passages further comprise a damper which is opened and closed in order to introduce a part of air passing through the cooling coil directly to the fan.
 15. The air conditioner according to claim 4, wherein the air passages further comprise a damper which is opened and closed in order to introduce a part of air passing through the cooling coil directly to the fan.
 16. The air conditioner according to claim 5, wherein the air passages further comprise a damper which is opened and closed in order to introduce a part of air passing through the cooling coil directly to the fan. 